Logistics engine Locad announced that it raised $11 million in a Series A funding round led by Reefknot Investments—a fund anchored by Temasek and logistics powerhouse Kuehne & Nagel.
Returning investors Sequoia India and Southeast Asia’s Surge, Febe Ventures, and Antler joined new investors Access Ventures, JG Summit, and WTI in the round.
The logistics startup Locad, founded in 2020, offers ecommerce brands with a cloud supply chain that allows them to expand their omnichannel business and automatically store, pack, ship, and track orders across Asia-Pacific.
The Singapore-based logistics startup will utilize the funds to develop its products and build a talent pool in India. It also has plans to increase the capabilities of the supply chain platform it now offers, which enables modern consumer brands in Thailand and across Asia-Pacific to automatically pack, ship, and track orders in a distributed, end-to-end supply chain as-a-service.
“Tech and data are at the heart of what we’re building here at Locad. To realize this, we’re doubling down on our hiring efforts in key locations such as Bengaluru, where we have a strong team of developers and marketers helping grow the product and business end-to-end,” said Shrey Jain, CTO, and Co-founder, of Locad.
In a seed round headed by Sequoia Capital India’s Surge in 2021, Locad raised $4.9 million. Other investors included Antler, Febe Ventures, Foxmont, Global Founders Capital, Gokongwei Family, and Hustle Fund.
The company claims to have handled more than two million transactions while serving more than 200 brands in Singapore, the Philippines, Thailand, Hong Kong, and Australia.
“Locad’s unique operating model of localizing warehouses into the cities ensures that inventory is kept close to the customers, thereby enabling significant cost and time savings for both brand and consumer,” said Ervin Lim, Vice President of Reefknot Investments.
“We believe that Locad’s logistics engine will spur greater participation in the digital economy as consumers outside of Tier I cities can now receive their orders 2-3X faster at a fraction of the usual cost,” he added.
